SHORT TAKES : ‘Trek’ Star a Singer Deep Down

Nichelle Nichols says she wasn’t particularly interested when her friend Gene Roddenberry insisted that she audition for a part in his new science fiction television series.

That was in 1966. Even now, Nichols considers “Star Trek” to be “just an interruption in my singing career, a nice interlude.”

Still, though Nichols is best known for her role as Lt. Uhura, she has never abandoned her musical career. Her one-woman show, “Reflections,” pays tribute to musical legends.

Nichols, born in Chicago in 1936, was discovered by Duke Ellington, toured with Lionel Hampton and danced with Sammy Davis Jr. Eventually, she was playing successful engagements in European nightclubs.

Next thing she knew, she was decoding subspace communiques from Starfleet Command.

But Trekkies need not fear. She and the old Enterprise crew “are still family,” she says, and she is looking forward to “Star Trek VI.”